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| CHINA |
| Great Wall of China at Badaling |
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| Cleaning woman taking a break at the Temple of Heaven, Beijing |
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| It felt like we had arrived on another planet, not just another country on the other side of the world. Hong Kong was an enormous glittering hectic city to arrive in - and we stayed right smack in the middle in the notorious Mansions (thanks a lot, Lonely Planet). Leaning out of the window all I could see was neon flashing signs - hundreds jostling for space and attention. We were both eager to get on with our trip - a big city is, after all, another big city anywhere in the world. After buying Chinese visas in Hong Kong we took the morning bus to (Chegndu??) via Shenzen and (??). I remember getting Gavin to pull my bottle of water out of my backpack in the morning before we got on the bus. This provided, I kid you not, a full five minutes of roll-on-the-ground, weak-with-hilarity laughter from the Chinese bus driver! It turns out that we were to be provided with free small water bottles (one each) on the bus. I'm still not sure why this was so funny, but then, the rest of our trip in China was to pass in a similar fog of non-comprehension. The overnight travel in China was fantastic - the buses had not seats, but small bunk beds. Key is to get a top bunk otherwise you will be in spitting-range from the person above you. But you can get a good nights sleep and save on the cost of a hotel. Train travel was also wonderful - this is where we were able to actually meet Chinese people - everyone during the day sat on the bottom bunks and we were always an interesting focus of people's attention. |
| October 2002 - November 2003 |
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| Carved marble steps at the Temple of Heaven, Beijing |
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| Burning incense at the Tibetan Temple, Beijing |